Veteran's Day
by snapesgirl21
Summary: Stephanie decides to show her appreciation to Ranger for his time in the Army. One-shot.


A/N: These characters clearly belong to Janet Evanovich.

We're told to honor those who have served our country on Veteran's Day each year. For the past few years, I've given my dad a cake from Prizzoli's as a small thank you for his time in the Army. I'd never done anything to recognize Morelli's time in the Navy while we'd been in a relationship, but I figured he'd probably done more whoring than sailing during those two years, so he had gotten enough thanks to last him a lifetime. But I realized this year that I'd never done anything for Ranger, who had spent four years in the Army and part of that time had been in Special Forces. I couldn't do the same thing for him as I did for my dad since Ranger doesn't eat dessert—not the kind found in a bakery at any rate.

Even though Morelli and I had permanently ended our relationship four months ago, I hadn't gone jumping into Ranger's bed. I'd wanted to have more self-respect than that. I knew Ranger wouldn't commit to a relationship with me outside of friendship with some sex thrown in on occasion, so I didn't want to make myself love him any more than I already did. But decreasingly satisfying encounters with my shower massager, I did some soul-searching in a box of Tastykakes and reached the conclusion that I could justify a night of great sex when it was serving as a thank-you to Ranger for his sacrifice to our country, but I wanted to make it special. I didn't want it to reek of desperation.

I'd spent several hours doing internet research, practicing what I would say, and fifty dollars on the perfect outfit so that I was ready to roll by Veteran's Day. I had butterflies in my stomach as I drove to the Rangeman building and let myself into the garage at nine that evening. I hadn't told Ranger I was coming, so I hoped he wouldn't be out working. I was wearing a knee-length black trench coat over my outfit with four-inch black heels. The last parts of my outfit were in my coat pockets, only to be put on right before I began my routine. I had never done anything like this before, so I hoped I wasn't horrible at it, or at the very least that I didn't make a complete fool of myself.

I fobbed my way up to the seventh floor, steadfastly ignoring the camera in the elevator, and unlocked Ranger's apartment. The lights were on and I could still detect the scent of dinner lingering in the air, but the apartment was quiet. I walked carefully down the hall, looking for Ranger as I went. He wasn't in the kitchen, his bedroom or the bathroom, but I found him on the phone in his office. He hadn't heard me come in and his back was me, so I took advantage of the opportunity and started staging the bedroom while listening for him to end his phone call. I heard him disconnect from his call and waited a few seconds to make sure he wasn't making another one directly after before calling out to him.

"Ranger?"

"In my office," he replied.

"I know you're in your office. I'm in your bedroom."

I heard footsteps and Ranger appeared in the doorway to his bedroom seconds later. A quizzical expression crossed his face when he saw me. "What's going on?"

"It's Veteran's Day," I said, standing with my hands clasped in front of me. "And on Veteran's Day, we're supposed to honor those who have served our country in the Armed Forces."

Ranger raked his eyes over me as he spoke. "I'm aware of that."

"Will you please have a seat in the chair?" I asked, indicating the black club chair I'd moved into the middle of the room. Ranger's lips twitched, but he did as he was told. What a good soldier.

"I would like to thank you for the years you spent serving in the United States Army," I told him, reaching in my coat pocket and pulling out the red gloves that went with my outfit. After I put them on, I reached in the other pocket and pulled out the camouflage beret that had matching red piping along the edges.

"You weren't just any soldier," I said, walking towards him and pulling on the hat. "You were a Ranger. I've never really known what it meant to be a Ranger, so I looked it up on the Army's website. That's when I discovered the Ranger's Creed. I'm sure you're familiar with it."

Ranger leaned back in the chair, resting his elbows on the arms and steepling his fingers. "Of course."

"After I read it, I realized that even though you're not in the Army any more, you still live by that Creed. And I thought I'd show you just how much I appreciate that by memorizing it."

I took a deep breathe, praying that I didn't forget any of it, and started to recite the Ranger's Creed.

"_**Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of the Rangers."**_

I started loosening the belt on my trench coat and working on the buttons as I spoke, doing it all with a deliberate slowness. I'd practiced several times and knew the perfect timing.

"_**Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite Soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move further, faster and fight harder than any other Soldier."**_

I opened up my coat and let it fall to the ground, which exposed my outfit and earned me a full-on smile from Ranger. I was wearing a camouflage mini dress that fell about three inches below my black thong. It had a red-lined mandarin neckline with a matching red belt and I was wearing black thigh-high stockings with lace at the tops that stopped about two inches below the hem of the dress. There was a fake patch on the chest that was supposed to resemble something that you'd find on a real soldier.

"_**Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be, one-hundred-percent and then some."**_

I ran a hand seductively across my collar bone, between my breasts and trailed all the way down the hem of the dressed, pulling it up an inch for a few seconds. I could see Ranger's eyes dilating black as he watched me, his gaze trailing up my body to my eyes. I bit down slightly on my bottom lip as I started to undo the red belt.

"_**Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well-trained Soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow."  
**_

I could see Ranger's _equipment_ bulging in his black cargo pants as I tossed the belt to the side of the room. The beret followed before I started pulling my gloves off, one finger at a time, until I had it halfway off my hand. I pulled each glove the rest of the way off with my teeth and tossed them to the side of the room to join the belt and the hat.

"_**Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country."**_

I had placed a chair from the dining room perpendicular to Ranger's and I walked over to it, putting my foot on the seat. I slowly pulled my stocking down until I reached my ankle. I put my foot back on the floor, stepped out of my shoe and pulled the stocking the rest of the way off before I repeated the process with the other leg.

"_**Readily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the lone survivor."**_

I reached back and unzipped the dress, pulling my arms out of the short sleeves and pushing it over my hips, where it joined my coat on the floor. I was left standing in my sexy black push-up bra and matching thong. I walked over to Ranger, barely able to stop myself from simply jumping on him out of sheer desire. My mouth was dry, my heart was pounding and my body was ready for Ranger as I reached back to unhook my bra.

"_**Rangers lead the way."**_

I was standing directly in front of Ranger as I took my bra off and dropped it on the floor by his chair. He leaned forward, hooked his fingers in the waistband of my thong and pulled it down my legs. I stepped out of it, not taking my eyes off his, and sucked in some air as I felt him run his fingers up the inside my legs. He stood up suddenly, pulling me into him and kissing me with a passion that I hadn't experienced from him recently. He pushed me towards the bed as he kept his mouth on mine, and I fell backwards onto it as my knees hit the edge. I pushed myself further onto the bed as he stripped out of his clothes. He was naked within twenty seconds and inside me within another thirty after that.

"So tell me," I said as we lay together half an hour later. "Did that adequately express my gratitude for your years of service?"

I felt Ranger laugh softly. "I have no doubt of your gratitude, babe. That was much more meaningful than all of those medals the Army gave me."

I snuggled into his chest. "Glad to hear it. I worked hard to memorize all of that and time the routine just right. I didn't mess up the Ranger's Creed, did I?"

"Babe, I was so focused on your body that you could have been reciting the Lord's Prayer backwards in German and I wouldn't have noticed."

I sat up and looked down at him. "Are you kidding me? I worked hard to memorize that and you weren't even listening!"

"I'm listening now. You could recite it again."

"Are you sure you're listening? Your finger is circling my nipple."

"I can multi-task this time around."

So I repeated the Ranger's Creed for him again, trying to stay focused despite my body's reaction his hands being on me.

"Did you hear me this time?" I asked once I'd finished. Ranger's eyes were black again and he was ready for action as I straddled him, whimpering as I lowered my body on to his.

"Yes, I did," he whispered as his lips met mine. "It was perfect."


End file.
